Pay As You Go Broadband

Do you realize that there are millions of frustrated Internet users who don’t have broadband yet? You do if you happen to be one of them. WiFi hotspots and public access computers are fine up to a point. But you really want and need broadband on the privacy of your home computer or when you are on the go. What do you do when you can’t get DSL or Cable broadband?

One excellent answer is to go wireless. This is what every smartphone does. But what about that desktop computer? It needs a wire plugged in the back, doesn’t it?

Not anymore. Many of today’s computers, like the Apple iMac, have wireless connectivity built-in. It’s there to make it easy to locate your computer wherever you want without the hassle of drilling holes in the wall or floor and stringing wires. Most everyone connects their broadband modem to a WiFi router to enable all sorts of devices, such as game consoles, laptop and notebook computers, Internet-enabled TVs and tablets. So, why don’t you just connect your computers to the Internet by WiFi?

Nice idea, but unless you happen to live in a restaurant or hotel, just where are you going to get a WiFi broadband signal? From a DataJack MiFi, of course.

The MiFi is a beautiful device. It’s about the size of a deck of cards. Inside is a rechargeable battery, a WiFi hotspot that connects up to 5 WiFi enabled devices, plus a 3G wireless radio. The broadband signal is provided wirelessly from a myriad of 3G cellular broadband signals that are available in most populated places and some areas out in the boonies. You can check coverage to see if the signal blankets the areas where you live, work and roam. If so, you’re in luck.

But, wait a second. Doesn’t 3G broadband require you to sign a two year contract and go through a credit check? If you march into a cell phone store and demand service, that’s exactly what happens. There’s another alternative, however. That’s the DataJack 3G nationwide wireless network. DataJack offers 3G broadband service on a pay as you go basis. That means an affordable price, no contract fees, no credit check and no deposit required. Best of all, you can use DataJack to provide broadband to your desktop as well as your laptop and tablet computers.

You have a choice of connection device. You can buy a DataJack USB device that looks like a flash drive and plug it into the computer you want to power with broadband service. It even has a microSD memory card slot so you can take files with you like you would with any USB memory drive. Unlike a standard flash drive, this one lets you take 3G broadband to whatever computer you like.

The MiFi is a bit larger, but even more powerful. Some tablet computers and other devices are enabled for WiFi but don’t have USB jacks. The MiFi lets you set up a personal WiFi hotspot at the push of a button. Include your friends and colleagues or use all the capacity for yourself. When you need to move on, push the button again and slip the MiFi into your pocket.

The DataJack wireless broadband solution is ideal for many Internet users who either can’t get wireline broadband services or just don’t stay put in any one location enough to justify paying line charges for service they only occasionally use. It’s also great for mobile users who don’t want the commitment that comes with cellular contracts or the rejection of not having a great credit rating. Other users will find it’s a great backup service that keeps you connected when the Cable or DSL goes down.

The one caveat is that this service isn’t for heavy Internet addicts. If you are always downloading video programs, every song you can find or large software packages, you’ll find the 5GB monthly fair use limit restraining. For most everyone else, this is plenty of capacity for Web browsing, email, downloading content, order entry on the go, playing games and streaming video clips.

By the way, what broadband do you have when you leave town? Little or none with standard wireline services. With DataJack, you have broadband wherever you have signal coverage nationwide. Now, that’s Internet you can take with you.

Does this sound like the type of Internet service that would work for you? If so, learn more and get your DataJack 3G Wireless broadband device and service now.

MiFi Points The Way to Wireless Transition

Verizon Wireless just made an amazing announcement. They will be selling the Apple iPad in their stores. But aren’t Apple and AT&T exclusive partners? Indeed. So, why is Verizon selling a product that won’t work on their network? ...Or will it?

Yes, it will. How Verizon accomplished this clever feat of engineering points the way to the future of wireless broadband. Actually, not the future future. Just the immediate future. Call it the era of wireless transition.

Wireless technology has pretty much developed along two lines. One is the telecom carriers, including AT&T, Verizon, Sprint and T-Mobile. There are other players in the cellular wireless game, but they are simply private branded versions of the big four within the US. What characterizes the major carriers is that their offerings are proprietary. What works on AT&T won’t work on Verizon Wireless, and vice versa.

The other wireless path is an industry standard known a WiFi. It comes in flavors such as a, b, g, and n. But unlike telecom carrier services there is enough commonality and backwards compatibility that pretty much any WiFi device will work on pretty much any wireless router, hotspot or access point.

What Verizon has cleverly done is marry the two lines. They can’t get into the iPad through the front door, so the come in the back door. How? Very simple. They use an interface device to convert cellular to WiFi. That device is the MiFi. The Verizon MiFi is a little box about the size of a pack of cards. Inside is a cellular radio, a WiFi radio, a battery and some circuitry to make it all work. All you do is push a button to turn it on and the converter works automatically. It allows up to 5 wireless devices to gain access to the Verizon 3G wireless network as if they were Verizon-enabled to begin with.

The Verizon iPad will consist of an Apple iPad and a Verizon MiFi bundled together. They are separate pieces of equipment, but the MiFi will slip into your pocket or bag so it isn’t intrusive. At first blush, it may seem like having to carry around two pieces of equipment instead of just one is a big disadvantage for Verizon compared to AT&T. But Verizon may get the last laugh after all. The MiFi provides 3G connectivity for your iPad, but it also provides 3G connectivity for your other devices that don’t have their own 3G service built-in. That includes your laptop computer, netbook, games, and even your Apple iPod. If you had to buy separate 3G service for each device, you’d go broke. But one MiFi can serve whatever gadgets need connectivity, as long as they are WiFi enabled.

Verizon isn’t the only one with a MiFi. Novatel, maker of the MiFi, offers an unlocked version for GSM carriers AT&T and T-Mobile. There’s a MiFi specifically for Virgin Mobile. Sprint goes one further with their Sierra Wireless Overdrive 3G/4G Mobile Hotspot. It works on both the Sprint 3G Mobile Broadband network and its 4G WiMAX network. CLEAR offers a similar 3G/4G converter called Clear Spot.

Even these converters are transitional technology. Smartphones, starting with the Droid X by Motorola and Samsung Epic, have the cellular to WiFi hotspot capability built-in. This is likely to become a standard feature on smartphone designs, as WiFi and Bluetooth are the industry standard wireless technologies. WiFi has the greater transmission range.

Down the road a few years, the tide of wireless seems to be going in the direction of standardizing on LTE as a 4G standard. Cellular phone may give way to VoIP over LTE. At that point it will be hard to tell the difference between a mobile phone, a smartphone and a digital device like a tablet computer. Perhaps a single smart radio chip will provide universal wireless connectivity. Just pick your carrier and sign up for a service plan after you buy the device. The wireless transition era will be complete.